Poppi's $1.95B Acquisition: Disrupting Beverage Industry Conventions

Michael B. Jordan’s sea moss beverage brand MOSS has hit pause, even as leadership says it’s still committed to a comeback. 🎬🥤 The functional drinks startup — co-founded by Jordan and backed by Outlier Society Ventures — has gone quiet in recent months, with its website offline, retailer listings showing out-of-stocks and no new social activity since 2025. CEO Ross Shepard cited “organizational changes” and said the company is “establishing a resilient business built for long-term growth,” adding that MOSS plans to bring its core products back to market. Launched in January 2024 with distribution in over 2,000 stores, MOSS positioned sea moss as its hero ingredient in premium 12 oz. glass bottles, later adding ashwagandha and ginseng. The pause raises fresh questions about the challenges of scaling functional beverages built around emerging ingredients. 🌊📉 Link to the full story in the first comment below 👇 #BevNET #FunctionalBeverages #CelebrityBrands #CPGnews #RetailDistribution #SeaMoss #BeverageIndustry

ICYMI: Tonica Kombucha founder reflects on two decades of growth from kitchen startup to national brand What began as a small home-brewing experiment in a Toronto bachelor apartment has grown into a national beverage business producing about 1,000 cases a day, according to the founder of Tonica Kombucha. Zoey Shamai, founder and owner of the Ontario-based company, says the kombucha maker is now operating from a 12,000-square-foot production facility in Woodbridge and selling products across Canada through major retailers, after starting the business two decades ago with no intention of building a company. https://lnkd.in/gPjQQ2xM #TonicaKombucha #EntrepreneurStory #StartupJourney #CanadianEntrepreneurs #WomenInBusiness #BeverageIndustry #Kombucha #BrandGrowth #RetailExpansion #MadeInCanada #BusinessSuccess #FounderStory #SmallBusinessCanada #CPG #RetailIndustry

[ TRANSACTION ALERT: FOOD & BEVERAGE ] Flavour Bombs, a rapidly growing food startup, has successfully secured a £50,000 investment from renowned investor Peter Jones for a 25% equity stake following their appearance on Dragons' Den. Transaction Details: Target: Flavour Bombs Acquirer/Investor: Peter Jones Value: £50,000 Advisor: Null Market Context: This strategic investment follows Flavour Bombs' impactful television debut, which significantly boosted sales and brand visibility. The capital and Peter Jones's extensive expertise are expected to accelerate the company's expansion, facilitating entry into national retailers and scaling operational capabilities. View the full deal at https://lnkd.in/esScjjGh #VCFunding #StartupInvestment #FoodTech #DragonsDen

ICYMI: Tonica Kombucha founder reflects on two decades of growth from kitchen startup to national brand What began as a small home-brewing experiment in a Toronto bachelor apartment has grown into a national beverage business producing about 1,000 cases a day, according to the founder of Tonica Kombucha. Zoey Shamai, founder and owner of the Ontario-based company, says the kombucha maker is now operating from a 12,000-square-foot production facility in Woodbridge and selling products across Canada through major retailers, after starting the business two decades ago with no intention of building a company. https://lnkd.in/gc9CDV8C #TonicaKombucha #EntrepreneurStory #StartupJourney #CanadianEntrepreneurs #WomenInBusiness #BeverageIndustry #Kombucha #BrandGrowth #RetailExpansion #MadeInCanada #BusinessSuccess #FounderStory #SmallBusinessCanada #CPG #RetailIndustry

Why we killed our front-row brand to double down on an underdog. People often ask me how Gourmet Craft Foods’ corporate dining vertical happened so suddenly.  The truth is, it wasn't sudden. It is a story that required us to trade our initial plans for market reality. For years, we ran two distinct verticals; an FMCG brand and the Corporate Dining services. To be honest, we started the dining vertical for one reason: cash flow. It was the "underdog" meant to keep the lights on while we chased our retail dreams with the FMCG brand. While we poured our energy into FMCG, the corporate dining side kept growing 2x year on year with almost zero effort. It was the silent engine that kept us afloat, but was also teaching us a critical lesson: It taught us that "Real Food" at the workplace isn't a luxury; it is an essential infrastructure that was fundamentally broken. That the Grade-A corporate world was starving for quality, and the "big players" aren’t enough to fill the gap. A year and a half ago, we made a cold business call. We paused the FMCG brand to focus 100% on the underdog. We realised that being the true ‘last mile’ infrastructure partner for Tech Parks was a much larger, more sustainable opportunity. Today, that underdog is our core engine. We have built a proven track record by becoming an "infrastructure partner" for Grade-A Tech Parks. We have done the hard work of proving the model and stabilising the economics. The foundation is built; and now we are building the engine for scale. Sometimes, the side project isn’t a distraction, it is the future. You just have to be brave enough to pivot. #GrowthStory #FoundersJourney #Pivot #CorporateDining #GourmetCraftFoods #Entrepreneurship #HyderabadStartups #alwayseatwell

Blind Tiger was just featured in this great roundup by Startup CPG highlighting 13 female-founded beverage brands you might not know—but should. What I love most about this list is what it represents: Not just products—but perspective. Different ways of thinking about what a product can be. Different ways of building companies. Different reasons for starting in the first place. If you haven’t checked out the list yet, it’s worth the scroll. A lot of brands on there that won’t stay “under the radar” for long. Thank you to Caitlin B. and Daniel Scharff for the feature! https://lnkd.in/gTaSpD5a

Food Startups: Think you have to be huge to get into Costco? Think again. Surfsnax did it with just one product — their unique salmon snacks. We’re excited to share our conversation with Mike Simon, COO of Surfsnax. Mike talks through his journey from struggling to get consumers to try his unique salmon snacks to ultimately landing placements in major retailers like Costco, Wegmans, Giant, Big Y, and more. Entrepreneur Minds Speak, Episode 41: https://lnkd.in/eBiDpXzU 👉 Want engaging packaging for your brand? We'll help you get started! ------ ⭐This is Lauren, founder and creative director of Crème de Mint 💄🧁💊 I help beauty, food and supplement businesses create WOW packaging that engages and delights their customers 👉 Reach out if you need a design partner to help with your WOW packaging ------

The "wellness bubble" is real, and it might be holding your brand back. During this Startup Cafe session at The KINN, Dan Cox and Sebastian Naum Leon break down a hard truth for CPG founders: flavor is king. While industry insiders prioritize clean labels and functional effects, the broader market simply wants a product that tastes good. If you want to scale a brand that actually delivers results at a national level, you have to understand the difference between your bubble and the rest of the country. #TheKINN #StartupCafe #ScalingStartups Watch the full conversation on our Youtube.  https://lnkd.in/g2kj6Dfm

In a market obsessed with speed, Curefoods is taking a different route. Instead of competing directly with quick delivery platforms, the company is focusing on building strong food brands like Krispy Kreme and scaling them sustainably. The idea is simple: speed can win attention, but brands win loyalty. By investing in quality, consistency, and recognizable brands, Curefoods is betting that long-term value will outperform short-term convenience. The real question is in the race between speed and brand, what actually lasts? #Startups #FoodTech #Curefoods #KrispyKreme #BusinessStrategy #Branding #QuickCommerce #Growth #DwarfsPlanet

What does it take to build a consumer brand in one of the most competitive industries in the world? In this founder interview, Anthony Rose speaks with Emma Thackray, co-founder of Hip Pop 🥤 What started as fermented drinks experiments in a kitchen has grown into a brand stocked in Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Co-op and more, producing millions of cans each year. Emma shares: • how Hip Pop began with a simple idea around gut-friendly drinks 🤔 • why taste had to come first to compete with traditional soft drinks 👅 • how cold LinkedIn outreach helped them find early angel investors 📨 • and what it takes to scale a challenger consumer brand 📈 A great watch for founders thinking about fundraising, FMCG and building a consumer brand. Watch the full interview 👇 https://lnkd.in/eZmmJF5j #Drinks #BeverageIndustry #Startups #GutFriendly #Founders